Genus Xylocopa. 257 



black, with a bright steely-blue iridescence. The head 

 closely punctured; the flagellum of the antennge nigro- 

 piceous beneath; more or less so in different examples. 

 Thorax shining above ; punctured ; the disk smooth, nearly 

 impunctate, having only a few fine scattered punctures ; 

 the metathorax rounded. Abdomen of the same width as 

 the thorax, not very closely punctured, most sparingly so 

 down the middle. 



Male. — Length 8 — 9^ lines. Very closely resembling 

 the female, but with the antennas usually entirely nigro- 

 piceous beneath, in some of the larger examples very 

 obscurely so ; varying greatly in this respect. The clypeus 

 Avith silvery-Avhite pubescence, and the anterior margin of 

 the thorax ydi\\ similar pubescence, more or less bright ; 

 in different examples there is sometimes a little Avhite 

 ])ubescence on each side of the basal margin of the 

 abdomen ; the sixth and seventh segments are fringed Avith 

 black pubescence on the apical segment, forming lateral 

 tufts. In some examples there is a little Avhitish pubes- 

 cence on the sides of the thorax beneath the Avings. 



This species is about the same size and is most closely 

 allied to X. rvjifarsis, but the male is at once distin- 

 guished by the colour of the hair that clothes the tarsi ; 

 the female of rujitarsis has paler Avings, and they liaA^e a 

 violet iridescence. 



A series of ten females, together with tAvelve females, 

 obligingly sent by Sir Sidney Smith Saimders, have 

 enabled me to indicate the range of A^ariation in this 

 species ; they are from Aden. 



Hah. — Sierra Leone; Angola; Natal; Aden. 



^ -14. Xylocopa lateritia. 



Xylocopa lateritia, Smith, Cat. Hym. Ins., Apidae, ii. 

 346, $ ; Gerst. Reis. Mossamb. 

 (Peter's), 444, Taf. xxix., fig. 

 1 $ , 2 $ ; and lieis. in Ost- 

 Afrika, Von der Dek. 315. 

 Female. — Black, Avith the thorax and basal segment of 

 the abdomen clothed Avith short brick-red pubescence ; a 

 tubercle in front of the anterior ocellus ; the flagellum 

 of the antennas pale beneath ; Avings dark-broAvn and 

 with a violet iridescence. 



Male. — The head, thorax above and at the sides, the 



TRANS. ENT. SOC. 1874. — PART II. (APR.) S 



